You Will Know Them By Their Fruits: What They are, How to Get Them, and Why it Matters
Written by: Alexandria King
Producing the Fruits of the Spirit is so necessary in our walk with God. Although our salvation is faith based and not action based; our actions do still matter. When our actions line up with God’s word and will, it is very apparent that we are abiding in God and he is abiding in us. The Fruits of the Spirit are evidence of our yielding to the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit working within us. But, what exactly are the Fruits of the Spirit? According to Galatians 5:22–23 they are: love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. We’re going to explore how we can produce the Fruits of the spirit, what our Fruits currently look like, and why this all even matters anyway.
How Do We Get the Fruits of the Spirit?
Producing the Fruits of the Spirit is directly related to your roots with Jesus. After we give our lives to Jesus we become new creations and God renews our minds and our ways the more we connect with him. Having the Fruits of the Spirit in our lives is not something we can independently work on without God. You produce the Fruits of the Spirit the more and more you yield to the Holy Spirit and root yourself deeper and deeper in your relationship with God.
Here are two scriptures that reveal to us how we can start producing the Fruits of the Spirit:
Ezekiel 36: 26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.
Galatians 5:16 But I say, walk habitually in the [Holy] Spirit [seek Him and be responsive to His guidance], and then you will certainly not carry out the desire of the sinful nature [which responds impulsively without regard for God and His precepts].
In Ezekiel, we see that God literally transforms our hearts as we accept him. We also see that our relationship with God is what causes us to walk in the ways of the Lord, meaning you cannot have all of the Fruits of the Spirit without first submitting to the Spirit of God and allowing him to live inside you and work through you. In Galatians, we see that it is “habitually” seeking and connecting with God that allows us to carry out Fruits of the Spirit and not sins of the flesh. Basically when we continually connect with God and yield to him we’ll see more of the Fruits of his spirit in our lives.
What Fruit are you Producing?
The Bible calls us to be set apart (2 Corinthians 6:17). Which is something I often struggle with and I’m sure many others do as well. Being set apart means that we are not called to look like the current culture, our friends, or other influences. We are called to look like Jesus, respond like Jesus, and act like Jesus. If that call to look like Jesus overlaps with other influences in the world that’s okay (but typically it doesn’t). Typically the call for Christian living means going against the culture’s status quo.
Just as there are fruits of the spirit, there are works of the flesh as stated in Galatians:
Galatians 5:19–21 “Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like…”
Woahhh right! As we look at what is listed, can we see any of these promoted in our world today? Like maybe fornication or selfish ambitions or envy (just to name a few)? As Christians we need to ask ourselves the hard questions like: is the Fruit I’m producing reflective of the Fruits of the Spirit or the works of the flesh? Do I walk in hatred and not in love? Do I walk more in unjustified anger instead of gentleness? These questions are difficult to respond truthfully to. But, it is good to interrogate our actions and hold ourselves accountable as Christians. When and if we do walk more in the flesh than the spirit we need to repent and talk to God; who is waiting with open, forgiving, loving arms and calling us to be set apart.
Why Does it Matter if I’m Not Showing Fruit?
The Biblical reasoning behind why it matters if we do not show fruit can be found in both Galatians and Matthew:
Galatians 6: 8 Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.
Matthew 5:14–16 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
When we walk in the flesh we receive the consequences of that lifestyle. But when we walk in the Spirit we receive the benefits of a life lived with God. Showing The Fruit of the Spirit matters because it’s evidence that we are sowing to please the Spirit. Showing Fruit is also important because we are specifically called by God to be the light of the world. We cannot be the light of the world if we are pursuing darkness. When we are producing the Fruits of the Spirit, the world around us can better recognize the light within us.
I hope in exploring The Fruits of Spirit you are able to reflect on your own life and your own walk with God. Hopefully this article challenges you to answer the call of being the Light of the World. And if you feel like you haven’t been answering the call to walk in love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, take today as a new start. Connect with God and watch him help you produce these fruit in your life! I pray that you stay encouraged on your walk in the Spirit.
